The XIT Ranch of Texas and the Early Days of the Llano Estacado (Volume 34) (The Western Frontier Library Series) - Softcover

Haley, J. Evetts

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9780806114286: The XIT Ranch of Texas and the Early Days of the Llano Estacado (Volume 34) (The Western Frontier Library Series)
Softcover
ISBN 10: 0806114282 ISBN 13: 9780806114286
Publisher: University of Oklahoma Press, 1977

Synopsis

Among the famous ranch brands of Texas are the T Anchor, JA, Diamond Tail, 777, Bar C, and XIT. And the greatest of these was XIT—The XIT Ranch of Texas.

It was not the first ranch in West Texas, but after its formation in the eighteen-eighties it became the largest single operation in the cow country of the Old West and covered more than three million acres, all fenced.

The state of Texas patented this huge rectangle of land, at the time considered by many to be part of "the great American desert," to the Capitol Freehold Land and Investment Company of Chicago, in exchange for funds to erect the state capitol building in Austin. This "desert" became a legend in the cattle business, and it remains today a memory to thousands who recall the era when mustangs and longhorns grazed beneath the brand of the XIT.

The development and operation of this pastoral enterprise and its relation to the history of Texas is the subject of this great and widely discussed book by J. Evetts Haley, now made available to readers every· where. It is the story of a wild prairie, roamed by Indians, buffalo, mustangs, and antelope, that became a country of railroads, oil fields, prosperous farms, and carefully bred herds of cattle. The XIT Ranch of Texas is the epic account of a ranching operation about which many know a little but only a few very much. It is the one volume that, more than any other, portrays the early-day cattle business of the West.

"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.

About the Author

J. Evetts Haley is a historian and a cowman and the author of three other books published by the University of Oklahoma Press: Jeff Milton: A Good Man With a Gun; Charles Goodnight: Cowman and Plainsman; and George W. Littlefield, Texan.

"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.

Publisher
University of Oklahoma Press
Publication date
1977
Language
English
ISBN 10 
0806114282
ISBN 13 
9780806114286
Binding
Paperback
Edition number
3
Number of pages
308
Rating
  • 3.87 out of 5 stars
    46 ratings by Goodreads